THE GREATEST RECORD EVER MADE! Works In Progress

 

Although I've long since completed (and submitted) a draft of my proposed book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1), the subject itself remains open for me. I continue to work on more GREM! entries, for use here on the blog and for potential engagement in an even-more-theoretical The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 2). An infinite number of tracks can each be THE greatest record ever made as long as they take turns. Maybe I take the infinite part of the book's tagline too literally.

Nonetheless! Here's a look at bits of some of my many GREM! works in progress. 

THE PRETENDERS: Back On The Chain Gang

It was just like starting over.

The Pretenders emerged in England in 1978, led by Chrissie Hynde, an American playing guitar and singing lead. Hynde, guitarist James Honeywell-Scott, bassist Pete Farndon, and drummer Martin Chambers turned out to be great Pretenders, debuting on record with a 1979 single covering the Kinks' "Stop Your Sobbing." More records followed: singles, two albums (1980's Pretenders and 1981's Pretenders II), with the 1981 EP Extended Play in between albums. 

And then half the band died. 

WAR: Low Rider

Has anyone ever used the word "imperious" to describe the rhythm of War's 1975 hit "Low Rider?" I'd presume it hasn't been done, and it may be a stretch to use it now. But GodDAYum, that regal riddum rules by divine and absolute right. Imperious War!

When discussing the records that make us wanna dance, prance, and make romance, we often talk about the beat. But more than the beat, "Low Rider" has a visceral, almost physical rhythm that dictates a mandatory moving of your body. Typical of me being me, I didn't come to appreciate that rhythm until way, way after the fact.

BONEY M: My Friend Jack

My relationship with disco is complicated. I hated it during its heyday, but began to re-think my position as it became clear that some (not all) of the Disco Sucks movement was built upon a foundation of tacit racism and homophobia. I further realized that a lot of the disco LP-burnin' Fascists hated my preferred punk and power pop almost as much as they hated dat ole debbil disco, so...enemy of my enemy is my friend.

But never mind the shifting parameters of my mixed-signal interactions with disco. Eurodisco group Boney M was a breed apart anyway, willfully weird but extremely pop.

PEGGY LEE: Fever

There is cool, and then there is cool. Cool-as-a-fever cool. No other approximation of cool has ever been anywhere near the sizzling cool of Peggy Lee's 1958 absolute annexation of Little Willie John's R & B (and crossover pop) hit "Fever." 

THE MAYTALS: Pressure Drop

Listening to Johnny Nash didn't prepare me for this.

I first saw Toots and the Maytals name-checked in some magazine (either Rolling Stone or Playboy, possibly both) in the late '70s, though I wasn't conscious of the music until many years thereafter. I recall that Linda Ronstadt was among those praising the essential nature of Maytals LPs Funky Kingston and Reggae Got Soul, and if I couldn't quite fit reggae into my new wave rock 'n' roll world view at the time (the Clash notwithstanding), I did get there eventually. 

THE POLICE: Roxanne

When I worked at a record store in the '80s, one of my co-workers was horrified when I mentioned that I didn't really care about the music of the Police. "Horrified" may not be much of an exaggeration; he gasped, put his hands to the sides of his face in a manner that would have made Macaulay Culkin proud, and backed away from me slowly. I think I saw him mouth the world Unclean! 

I had liked the band initially, around the time of their first two albums in the late '70s, but found myself losing interest in them as they became (to my taste) increasingly...mainstream? I guess. I wasn't trying to be hipper than the crowd, honest; it was just that I preferred their earlier records. I appreciate some of their bigger hits a bit more now than I did then, though I'm pretty sure I'll always detest that damned stalker song, "Every Breath You Take."

And "Roxanne?" My God, "Roxanne" was far and away the best thing on AM Top 40 in 1979. Nothing else even came close to it. 

ABBA: Dancing Queen

There is a false conviction among some rock 'n' roll fans that ABBA's music is inherently schlocky. This conviction is a big ol' pile of piggy poop.

AM radio surrendered to ABBA's "Waterloo" in 1973. I may have struggled with some indecision over whether or not I liked the song at the time, and I can't explain why. It was a pop song. I like pop songs. And I sorta liked ABBA. Ultimately, I decided that I liked "Waterloo," too. 

"SOS" was my favorite among ABBA's initial run of hits, though the only ABBA singles I bought were "Knowing Me, Knowing You" and "Take A Chance On Me." I also loved "Dancing Queen." I had no use for "Fernando." I was indifferent to "Mamma Mia" and "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do." Reading in Bomp! magazine's 1978 power pop issue about "So Long," a purportedly great ABBA power pop song I'd not yet heard, was reason enough for me to buy my friend Jay's copy of ABBA's Greatest Hits. I was perfectly okay with ABBA's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Hell, a lot of ABBA's hits are closer to original-formula '50s/early '60s rockin' pop than anything that a band like, say, Genesis ever did.

"Dancing Queen" is ABBA's signature tune. It's often lumped in with disco, but its gloss is more girl-group than Studio 54. It shimmers in its own deliciously pure pop way, not beholden to trends, timeless yet still so '70s it could have been sporting a WIN button.

THE AVENGERS: We Are The One

The Clash sang that anger could be power. Even before that line appeared in The Clash's London Calling album track "Clampdown" in 1979, a San Francisco group called the Avengers was on stage at Winterland, opening for the Sex Pistols in that group's final appearance meltdown, and embodying the concept of cathartic fury. Anger. Power. Rock 'n' roll.

BLONDIE: (I'm Always Touched By Your) Presence, Dear

A love letter from Lois Lane, sung by Marilyn Monroe, backed by the Dave Clark Five.

Blondie's lead singer Debbie Harry was sexy without any appearance of trying to be sexy. She didn't even seem to be conscious of her everyday allure, her natural beauty and glamour, her God-given possession of It. She just was. 

My first awareness of Blondie came via Phonograph Record Magazine in 1977. I've never forgotten writer Mark Shipper's description of the band's look as "like Marilyn Monroe backed by the Dave Clark Five," a blurb which (even more than Debbie Harry's attractive image) sold me on Blondie well before I ever heard a note of their music. When I got to college that fall, I immediately started carpet-bombing the school radio station with requests for all of the acts I'd read about in PRM, from Television to the Dictators, and certainly including constant (and urgent) petitions to hear Blondie's "X Offender." I loved the track on first spin, and I have never stopped loving it since. And they called it puppy love!

THE JAM: In The City

Punk could be pop. In America, the Ramones already knew that, even if the charts didn't reflect the verity of that aesthetic.

THE YOUNG RASCALS: Good Lovin'

Little Steven says garage rock is "white kids trying to play black rhythm and blues and failing--gloriously." Fair enough. So what do we call it when a white group tries to play soul music, and succeeds? We could call that the Young Rascals.

THE RECORDS: Starry Eyes

Dreams of fame and fortune are not held solely by the performers.

THE VOGUES: Five O'Clock World

It should only be a footnote in the story of "Five O'Clock World," but the result is so engaging, so perfect, that I can't help elevating it to a prime moment in the history of rockin' pop on TV. 

THE DICKIES: Banana Splits

TRA-LA-LAAAA! TRA-LA-LA-LAAAAAA! TRA-LA-LAAAA! TRA-LA-LA-LAAAAAAAAAA!

No. You get a hold of yourself. Don't be messin' with the manifest majesty of the Banana Splits.

And don't be messin' with the manifest DESTINY of The Greatest Record Ever Made!, whether it's Volume 1, Volume 2, or an undrafted free agent. The infinite does what the infinite does.

If you like what you see here on Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do), please consider a visit to CC's Tip Jar. 

Carl's new book Gabba Gabba Hey! A Conversation With The Ramones is now available, courtesy of the good folks at Rare Bird Books. Gabba Gabba YAY!! https://rarebirdlit.com/gabba-gabba-hey-a-conversation-with-the-ramones-by-carl-cafarelli/

If it's true that one book leads to another, my next book will be The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1). Stay tuned. Your turn is coming.

This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio with Dana & Carl airs Sunday nights from 9 to Midnight Eastern, on the air in Syracuse at SPARK! WSPJ 103.3 and 93.7 FM, streaming at SPARK stream and on the Radio Garden app as WESTCOTT RADIO. Recent shows are archived at Westcott Radio. You can read about our history here.

I'm on Twitter @CafarelliCarl

That Time JOHN WICKS And PAUL COLLINS Visited THIS IS ROCK 'N' ROLL RADIO

John, Carl, Paul, and Dana

On June 11th 2009, a pair of power pop legends joined Dana & Carl for a special Thursday night edition of This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio. John Wicks of the Records and Paul Collins of Paul Collins' Beat were in the midst of an acoustic tour, and their two-man unplugged show had a date in Cortland, NY on Friday the 12th. But, like the good Beatles fans we are, we said our hellos the night before.

Credit true believer Richard Rossi for setting this up. Seeking to publicize the Friday night club gig, Rich contacted us to ask if we were interested in inviting John Wicks and Paul Collins to appear on our show. I suspect our reply of Yes! YES!! may have compromised our façade of cool detachment. We agreed to do a one-off Thursday night live TIRnRR, and Rich arranged for John and Paul to come to Syracuse. We secured space in a common area just outside our closet-sized studio, invited a few friends to serve witness, and welcomed John Wicks and Paul Collins to This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio.

It was a blast. They answered questions and played a few numbers from their own impressive songbooks plus some Hollies and Flamin' Groovies covers. An hour show flew past like nothing. But lemme tell ya: it was something. It was really something.

I have a vague memory of someone--possibly future Perilous guitarist Bob Cat, who was there with John and Paul--trying to capture the night on video. John Wicks passed away n 2018. I'd forgotten all about the video until very recently, when Rich discovered it among John's personal effects. Rich shared a clip with us, and asked our permission to share it publicly.

We may have compromised our façade of cool detachment with our eager 'n' affirmative reply.

So here's the final song from that time in 2009 when power pop legends John Wicks and Paul Collins visited This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio. It's a performance of the Records' "Hearts Will Be Broken"--my favorite Records track--and we remain thrilled that we had this opportunity to meet and chat with these two artists we've admired for so long.

You can see Rich's write-up of the clip at the John Wicks and the Records website, which includes a link to the video. For posterity, we're also embedding the video here:

Thanks again, Rich!

If you like what you see here on Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do), please consider supporting this blog by becoming a patron on Patreon, or by visiting CC's Tip Jar. Additional products and projects are listed here.

This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio with Dana & Carl airs Sunday nights from 9 to Midnight Eastern, on the air in Syracuse at SPARK! WSPJ 103.3 and 93.7 FM, and on the web at http://sparksyracuse.org/ You can read about our history here.

10 SONGS: 1/20/2022

10 Songs is a weekly list of ten songs that happen to be on my mind at the moment. The lists are usually dominated by songs played on the previous Sunday night's edition of This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio with Dana & Carl. The idea was inspired by Don Valentine of the essential blog I Don't Hear A Single.

John Wicks, Carl Cafarelli, Paul Collins, Dana Bonn, June 11th 2009

This week's edition of 10 Songs draws exclusively from the playlist for This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio # 1112: WE'RE YOUR FRIENDS FOR NOW! 30 Years Of Dana & Carl.

THE FLASHCUBES: Flavor Of The Month

If it was difficult to distill three decades of Dana & Carl radio shows into one three-hour playlist, it would be even more of a challenge to whittle all of that down to just ten songs. So, we're not going to attempt that. From our 30th anniversary shindig, these are just the ten songs I feel like annotating a little bit.

And it starts with the Flashcubes. Syracuse's own power pop powerhouse! Given how important the 'Cubes have been to us, I wanted to begin this celebration with a Flashcubes track. Obviously. I had my favorite 'Cubes song "No Promise" lined up as the likely pick, but although I didn't tell anyone (not even Dana), I was hoping for a different choice: something new. I knew the group was working on new recordings--they released two new covers in 2021-2022, of Pezband's "Baby It's Cold Outside" and the Dwight Twilley Band's "Alone In My Room"--and hints dropped by two of the 'Cubes suggested a third was due imminently. An early mix of that third cut, a cover of the Posies' "Flavor Of The Month," arrived just in time to be included in this week's 30-year blowout. HuzZAH! On the radio it goes. Flavor of the month? Flavor of 30 years, my friends.

(Will there be still more Cubic covers to come in 2022? I dunno. But I betcha. The answer will be in revealed in flashes. Brilliant flashes.

DIGBY: Spirit

I've told these stories before. I'm going to tell them again.

Digby's 2003 album Go Digby was a huge TIRnRR favorite, with two of its tracks ("Minerva" and "Spirit") scoring significant airplay on our weekly radio party. So when Digby came to town for a show at Happy Endings coffeehouse, Dana and I were there!

Unfortunately, Dana and I were just about the only ones there. There was, I think, one other person in attendance, and that guy had never heard of Digby, he just happened to be there. Digby's audience that night would number three. Three would be the number, for the number would be three.

That's gotta be demoralizing. Gotta be. Nonetheless, Digby sucked it up, hit the stage, and played as if there were Digby At Budokan. They put on a show. Troupers. And one hell of a good rock 'n' roll band. Digby got spirit.

THE CHARMS: Top Down

Speaking of troupers, count the Charms' lead singer Ellie Vee amongst the troupiest. We were playing the hell out of the Boston group's 2003 debut album Charmed, I'm Sure, and she somehow got trapped into doing a telephone interview with Dana & Carl. That wouldn't have been so bad by itself--no, really, we're not that unpleasant to deal with--but the interview itself was overwhelmed by tech glitches. Listeners could not hear Ellie at all; they just heard me, asking questions, and then repeating whatever Ellie said (YES, ELLIE SAYS SHE'S DELIGHTED TO BE ON THE SHOW. NO, SHE INSISTS THAT SHE'S NOT LYING WHEN SHE SAYS THAT.). Oy....

To her enduring credit, Ellie put up with all of this static like the pro she is. She even let us include a Charms track, "Talk Is Cheap" (fitting!), on our second compilation album, This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 2. A trouper. We've been blessed to meet some true rock 'n' roll troupers over this thirty-year gig. Ellie Vee is one of the best.

THE BEAT: Rock N Roll Girl

Sometimes I wanna pinch myself to make sure this isn't just a dream. Lemme check now...OW! Ouch! Okay, not dreaming. Damn! Magic fingers hurt...!

Where was I? Yeah, it's been cool to have so many opportunities to connect in some way with musicians whose work has affected me. As a freelance writer, I was able to interview the Ramones, Joan Jett, Mark Lindsay, Cyril Jordan, Greg Kihn, and more, and I've had correspondences with a large number of others. And it was a real treat the day that Paul Collins and John Wicks came to visit This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio.

I've been a fan of both of these guys since I was in college. I saw John play with his group the Records in 1979; I plucked my copy of Paul's former combo the Nerves' EP off the retail rack even before that, and my allegiance followed Mr. Collins as he formed his own group, the Beat. 

In 2009, Paul Collins and John Wicks were touring as an acoustic duo, and the tour brought them to nearby Cortland, NY. I had another commitment that prevented me from hitting that show, but TIRnRR's longtime friend Richard Rossi arranged for Paul and John to appear with us on the air at the TIRnRR studio in Syracuse the night before their gig. They sang, we chatted, and it was just a blast. They could not have been nicer to us. 

We're told you shouldn't meet your heroes. Screw that. The gray, anonymous dispensers of such wisdom have never had any freakin' clue about what's really best for us. Meet your heroes if you can. Tell them how important they are to you. Be a fan. Be polite and respectful, for God sake, but be a fan. It's part of the dream.

At the Cortland gig the next night, Paul recognized Dana and gave him a big bear hug, and said that appearing on TIRnRR was "so much fuckin' FUN!" I approve of that message. I corresponded with John and Paul for years after that. We lost John Wicks to cancer in 2018. I still hear from Paul now and again, and he supplied a fresh congratulatory bumper for our 30th anniversary show. 

And I told Paul: I wanna go back in time, and I wanna tell my late '70s and early '80s self that someday some of your heroes will be aware of whatever the hell it is you do, and they'll acknowledge you. They'll be good to you. It's not a dream. But it's like a dream. Paul's right: it is so much fuckin' fun...!

MARY LOU LORD: Aim Low

Dana and I met singer Mary Lou Lord on two separate occasions, and Dana met her once or twice after that. The first time I heard Mary Lou's music was when Dana played "Lights Are Changing" on the very first This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, December 27th, 1998. (NOTE: for those confused by the math problem of a show that started in 1998 celebrating its 30th anniversary in 2022, be advised that the Dana & Carl show predates the launch of TIRnRR, commencing on January 15th, 1992 as We're Your Friends For Now. A more detailed history of our radio shell game can be found here.)

Mary Lou played a disastrous, audience-talking-through-the-razzafrazzin'-set club gig in Syracuse in...1999? Dana and I were there, and we commiserated with her for an hour or two after the show. And yeah, as I've said many times since then, she and I spent a lot of that time talking about our daughters. Didn't see that coming when I was a teenager dreaming about meeting pop stars.

THE POPTARTS: I Won't Let You Let Me Go

The first track played on the first TIRnRR was "I Won't Let You Let Me Go" by the Poptarts, an all-female local quintet from the same vibrant late '70s scene that gave us the Flashcubes. The group's lead singer Gael Sweeney and her husband David Soule (who had been in the Tearjerkers, whose lone single "Syracuse Summer" is The Greatest Record Ever Made) later sat in with us for an evening of TIRnRR, promoting a Lou Reed Night live show they were hosting at Happy Endings. Dana actually played at that show, too, as bassist for Lovelorn. I...did not play. I think I hummed along from my perch in the audience.

PACIFIC SOUL, LTD.: We Go High

Picking a song from the 30th anniversary playlist, the stories of "We Go High" by Pacific Soul, Ltd. and "Another Night" by the legendary Evie Sands intersect (for us, anyway) with "I Hate Rock 'n' Roll" by Cockeyed Ghost. Cockeyed Ghost's Adam Marsland and I were members of the same online power pop community in the '90s, sharing information and trading cassettes. Adam lived in Southern California, though he had roots in Central New York. Dana and I met him when the Keep Yourself Amused incarnation of Cockeyed Ghost came to Syracuse in the late '90s, and we met Adam again (with bassist Robert Ramos) when they did a 1999 Easter Sunday set at Borders on behalf of their then-recent album The Scapegoat Factory. Adam and Robert visited the radio show, and spent much of their TIRnRR time trading Star Trek and Davey And Goliath impressions, Adam as William Shatner saying Spock! and Robert replying Davey?  You had to be there.

(Robbie Rist was also a member of the above-mentioned online pop music community, which was where he and I first got in touch. Robbie played on The Scapegoat Factory, but we met him a few years later when he was touring with Kenny Howes.)

We saw Adam as a solo act a few times after that, and again when his brought his new combo Adam Marsland's Chaos Band to town for a show with Beauty Scene Outlaws at the Half Penny Pub. That night was the first time I ever heard Beauty Scene Outlaws' original song "Carl Cafarelli," but I never did figure out who or what that song was supposed to be about. Some DJ, I guess.

Adam's Chaos Band included Evie Sands, an accomplished singer and guitarist with a dizzyingly impressive resumé; the fact that she was a guest on Shindig! is good enough for me. Severo had played bass on the band's recordings, but Teresa Cowles was in charge of four-string duties that night at the Half Penny. Not realizing that Teresa had officially joined the Chaos Band, I made the false presumption that she was filling in for Severo just for the tour, and I asked her if she played in any bands back in L.A.

Well, can't blame her for taking offense there. "Yeah," she said, "that was me playing the Danelectro bass on stage just now, you stupid boy!" She, uh, didn't actually say "stupid boy," but it was implied and deserved. Oops? I stammered an apology, she realized the source of my error, and forgave me sufficiently to allow me to live. The next time I saw her, when the Chaos Band returned to the area for a show in Cortland, she greeted me with a hug. Forgiveness!

You've probably seen Teresa as Carol Kaye in the Brian Wilson biopic Love And Mercy. She's also a TIRnRR Fave Rave as the voice of "We Go High" by Pacific Soul, Ltd., which is the trio of her, Adam, and Norman Kelsey. The song offers words to live by: When they go low, we go high. It ain't easy, but we try.

RINGO STARR: It Don't Come Easy

We talked to a Beatle. On July 21st, 2003, Dana and I attended Ringo Starr's press conference in Rama, Ontario. With press credentials, I got to ask Ringo a question, and he answered me.

We talked to a Beatle. A Beatle talked back.

Best. Gig. Ever.

THE COWSILLS: She Said To Me

I'm sorry, but if you don't dig the Cowsills, I suspect there may be something fundamentally wrong with you. Seek medical attention. Now.

We began corresponding with Bob Cowsill a bit in the 2000s. I have no recollection of how our email paths crossed, but Bob admired the show and was appreciative of the airplay we'd given the Cowsills' utterly fantastic 1990s album Global. Bob granted us use of the Global track "She Said To Me" on our 2006 compilation CD This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 2.

Dana, my wife Brenda, and I got to see the Cowsills perform as part of the Happy Together Again oldies tour at a Syracuse date in the summer of 2019. They were just stellar--so good live!--and they did a meet-n-greet after the show. I introduced myself to Bob, and I will never forget the way his face lit up when he realized who we were. "Paul! Susan!," he said to his siblings. "These are the guys from that radio show I was telling you about! They play stuff you don't hear anywhere, and I mean anywhere!" 

I'm basically shy. I know I hide that very well, and the confidence I have in my writing and in my pop music taste helps me to manufacture enough bravado to fool folks into believing I'm more outgoing than I really am. I often fool myself into believing that. ACTING! Yet I'm still surprised when someone likes what we do. It's not false modesty--my bravado insists I don't have any modesty of any description--but my inner doubts sometimes compromise my ability to embrace the notion that people like us. I guess, even though my bravado does most of the talking, the work really does speak for itself.

Bob Cowsill's face. I swear, he was as happy to meet us as we were to meet him. I can't tell you how much that means, and how great that feels.

MR. ENCRYPTO: The Last Time [a cappella--expanded mix]

Magic. Oh, this track is just friggin' magic. We've corresponded with Bruce Gordon (aka Mr. Encrypto) for years, and met him on a few occasions when he's flown all the way from California to Syracuse to guest-host TIRnRR with his Let's Be The Beatles! concept. Let's Be The Beatles! insists that the Beatles had such pervasive impact that every single track they ever released prompted the sincere flattery of at least one attempt to mimic it--not as a cover version, but as a theoretical original built from Mersey moptopped DNA. It's a fascinating idea, and it makes for way fab radio.

And of course we're big fans of Mr. Encrypto's own music. We have ears and pulses. Our favorite among favorite Mr. Encrypto tracks is a vocals-only mix of his song "The Last Time," an a cappella masterpiece that is one of the defining tracks of This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio's long and storied history.

You wanna know who else likes this track? A listener and guitarist named Joel Tinnel. Joel heard "The Last Time" on TIRnRR, and was properly blown away. Joel played the track for his friend Steve Stoeckel, bassist for the Spongetones, and Joel told Steve, "We should form a band."

Across four states, Joel and Steve recruited Bruce, as well as drummer Stacy Carson, and an incredible group called Pop Co-Op was born, its spontaneous generation prompted by a little mutant radio show in Syracuse. 

We did that? Us? We are told that this is true. It's not a dream. It's the best gig ever. We're your friends for now. 30 years on, I'm thinking we may have expanded the definition of "for now." Thank you, friends.

See ya again this Sunday night? We'll be here. 

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This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio with Dana & Carl airs Sunday nights from 9 to Midnight Eastern, on the air in Syracuse at SPARK! WSPJ 103.3 and 93.7 FM, and on the web at http://sparksyracuse.org/ You can read about our history here.

The many fine This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio compilation albums are still available, each full of that rockin' pop sound you crave. A portion of all sales benefit our perpetually cash-strapped community radio project:

Volume 1: download
Volume 2: CD or download
Volume 3: download
Volume 4: CD or download
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I'm on Twitter @CafarelliCarl

She's Dian. And she was the Most

Singer Dian Zain passed away last week. You may not have heard her name before. But if you were part of the Bright Lights punk/new wave scene here in Syracuse in the late '70s and very early '80s, you knew Dian. She was, in some ways, our brightest light, a pint-sized bundle of energy and enthusiasm, dancing, singing, bopping, and preaching a Gospel of rock 'n' roll. 

Dian's highest public profile came as the lead singer of the Most from 1979 to 1980. Even before that, she was the face of punk in Syracuse, an androgynous figure with razor-cut hair and razor-cut clothing, reigning benevolently o'er the dancefloor at Flashcubes shows circa '77-'79. 'Cubes guitarist Paul Armstrong was her boyfriend at the time, and Dian was a relentless de facto 'Cubes promoter. Dian thought the Flashcubes deserved to be stars. She never shied from proclaiming that conviction.

I saw her join the Flashcubes on stage a couple times, I think. I remember a show at the Firebarn in 1978, when the 'Cubes backed Dian as she sang the Patti Smith Group's "Because The Night." She wanted the Flashcubes to hit big, but she had personal ambitions, as well. She didn't just want to be a star's girlfriend. Dian wanted to be a star herself.

Toward that end, Dian recorded a single in 1979. Paul Armstrong's on there, along with Zenny Caucasian and Ducky Carlisle of the Ohms. The B-side was "(Do The) Jumping Jack," a Paul Armstrong song from the Flashcubes' early days. The A-side was a Dain Zain original, "Take A Chance."

PA: Hey, ya goin' to the dance tonight?

Dian: Yeah, what else is there?

Paul and Dian's spoken exchange opens "Take A Chance," a pure pop confection that would have been worthy of Blondie. The "Take A Chance"/"(Do The) Jumping Jack" 45 was pressed and nearly ready for release that summer of '79, when Paul Armstrong was suddenly dismissed from the Flashcubes. Paul joined Dian's new combo, alongside members of a Watertown band called the Upbeats: guitarist Derek Knott, bassist Tommy O'Reilly, and drummer Judd Williams. It was too late to change the label on the 45, which credits the single to just Dian Zain. But there was time to create a picture sleeve, showing the members of this new band and introducing them to the world with their debut single. Ladies and gentlemen, THE MOST!!

That's Judd. He's the Most! That's Derek. He's the Most! That's Paul. He's the Most! That's Tommy. He's the Most! I'm Dian. And WE'RE THE MOST!

The Most made their live debut in August of '79, opening for the fabulous British pop group the Records at Stage East in East Syracuse. As she did at all of the Most's early live shows, Dian started the set by introducing the members of the Most before they launched into their opening number, an incredible pop song called "Let's Go Out Tonight."

Come on all you little girls and boys

Let's all go out tonight!

Chills. I was there at that first show, and at as many subsequent shows as I could witness. Over the approximate year of their existence, through three different distinct line-ups, the Most developed a killer repertoire, including Paul's Cubic remnants "Sold Your Heart" and "I'm Not The Liar," Tommy's "Best Of Me," ace interpretations of the Rolling Stones, the Heartbreakers, and the Rascals, and more originals: "(I Wanna) Bop With You," "Pinball NY," "Girls Don't Pay," "Think Twice," "Rockerfeller," "Who Am I?," "Habits," "Tomboys," "Cold War," "I Love You," "Not Guilty," "After School," and still more my memory refuses to concede at this late date. I was a fan. I was a big, big fan.

Image courtesy of Tamaralee Shutt

The members of the Upbeats returned to Watertown by the end of '79. Paul and Dian formed a brief alliance with the Ohms, as that group would open for the Most and then become the Most, Dian, PA, Zenny, Ducky, and Keith Korvair. A new Most formed in 1980, with bassist Dave Anderson and drummer Dick Hummer. In the summer of 1980, Hummer departed the group for his own solo act the Machine + Hummer; Ducky returned to the kit for the short remainder of the Most's tenure.

Dian and Paul's personal relationship ended in 1980, though they stayed together in the Most until, I guess, around August of 1980. Dian formed a new group, Zain Grey, and Paul, Dave, and Ducky became 1.4.5.

From my first Flashcubes shows in 1978 through my final Most shows in 1980, Dian was always nice to me. She appreciated people who shared her passion for rock 'n' roll, fellow fans of the beat and the bounce and the bright, bright lights. We'd chat between sets at 'Cubes gigs, and we'd talk more and more as the Most happened. At one Firebarn show, I was among several revelers brought on stage to help the Most sing the Flashcubes' "Got No Mind." The stage collapsed under all that extra weight--not my extra weight, 'cuz my part of the stage remained intact--and I reached out and grabbed Dian before she fell. Hey, I'm a fan and a hero!

Hey, speaking of that. I decided I wanted the Most to play in my college town of Brockport. I visited Dian and Paul's house in Solvay (actually within Syracuse city limits, but PA said everything west of Cookie Caloia's was in Solvay), and we hatched plans to bring the Most to Brockport. That show was a huge success, and Dian thanked me from the stage. Members of my circle shouted back, "He's my roommate!," "He's my boyfriend!," and "He's my hero!" Dian responded, "Well, he's our hero, too." Preen! I was paid forty dollars cash for securing the Brockport gig. As Dian gave me my commission, she said, "Here's the money, honey. You earned it."

Scan courtesy of Wes Connors

In that time frame, when I firmly (and correctly) believed that Syracuse groups were at least as good as any groups anywhere, the Most were my favorite local group. Yes, even more than the Flashcubes, at least in '79-'80. Both groups should have been huge. When I was 20, I imagined a jukebox rock 'n' roll flick called Let's Go Out Tonight!, a never-in-a-million-years movie that would have starred then-recent Playboy model Bo Derek and featured the Most on-screen singing the title tune. I so wanted them to succeed. But after that debut 45 of "Take A Chance," the Most only released one more track, "Rockerfeller," on a Rochester, NY compilation LP called From The City That Brought You...Absolutely Nothing. I did not return to Syracuse after graduating from college in 1980. I never had an opportunity to see Zain Grey. I didn't have any chance to speak with Dian Zain for decades.

I remain a fan. I remain disappointed that the Most's great songs are mostly lost to the public; if anyone wants to go into the vaults and dig out the Most's unreleased tracks for a CD compilation, I call dibs on writing the liner notes. Hell, this piece could be the liner notes. Yeah, I for damned sure remain a fan.

And I did speak again with Dian in 2014, when my This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio co-host Dana Bonn and I were helping to put together the first Bright Lights! Syracuse punk and new wave rock 'n' roll reunion show at Syracuse's Lost Horizon. The show was Paul Armstrong's idea; he had rejoined the Flashcubes years ago, and he would be playing at Bright Lights! with both 1.4.5. and the headlining 'Cubes. I asked him about the possibility of reuniting the Most, and he agreed. With that decided, I coordinated some logistics with Dian via email and telephone. On July 19, 2014, Dana and I introduced the Most as they reclaimed the Lost Horizon stage. Dian took over from there. I'm Dian, and WE'RE THE MOST! Yeah. Let's all go out tonight!

Today, Dian Zain is mourned by her family and friends, remembered as a mother and grandmother and a rock 'n' roll spirit beyond compare. I wish a wider audience had the chance to remember her now as a star. She was a star. The face of the Syracuse new wave. The voice of the fans, and the diminutive embodiment of our brightest lights. The lights are dimmer today. She was Dian. And she was the Most. She still is.

Ya goin' to the dance tonight?

Yeah.

What else is there?

Image courtesy of Tamaralee Shutt

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This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio with Dana & Carl airs Sunday nights from 9 to Midnight Eastern, on the air in Syracuse at SPARK! WSPJ 103.3 and 93.7 FM, and on the web at http://sparksyracuse.org/ You can read about our history here.

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